Mount Prospect to Hold Open House at Proposed New Police Headquarters
On Tuesday, March 27, the Village of Mount Prospect will hold a public Open House at 799 Biermann Court, the site of the proposed new Police Headquarters. The open house will take place from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. and will be a chance for the public to tour the building, see photos of existing conditions of the current Police Headquarters and view examples of modern police facilities, as well as architectural renderings of what the renovated Biermann Court building might look like. Information on the financing plan, impact on beat/shift change operations and neighborhood traffic and the potential re-redevelopment of the existing Public Safety Building property will also be available.
The Mount Prospect Village Board voted to approve the purchase of property located at 799 Biermann Court in the Kensington Business Center for use as a new Police Headquarters at the March 6 Village Board Meeting. The purchase price is $5,120,431. There is a forty-five day (45) due diligence period associated with the purchase, which began on March 7.
"We are proposing a robust public discussion of this public safety initiative, starting with the March 27th Open House," said Mayor Arlene Juracek. "We will ensure transparency at every step of the project and encourage participation from our stakeholders. While real estate transactions move at their own pace, we have been careful to build time into the process so there are opportunities to obtain feedback from the public," Juracek stated. "This is a big step, a significant undertaking for the Village. We want to make sure the public understands why it is necessary at this point to move forward on the project in order to ensure a safe and efficient working environment for our police officers and staff and to better ensure a safe community," Juracek said.
The Biermann Court property would adequately meet the projected needs for the new Police Headquarters. These needs were outlined in a recent Space Needs Analysis report, available on the Village website at www.mountprospect.org/SpaceNeedsStudy. Built in 1982, 799 Biermann Court has been well maintained and has adequate space for current police operations, creating an excellent opportunity for adaptive reuse as well as room for potential growth.
By performing an adaptive reuse of the existing building at 799 Biermann Court, the Village anticipates approximately $10 million savings as opposed to new construction. RFPs for architectural services and a construction manager were released March 7 with submittals expected back March 28. The results of this process will be presented to the Board on April 10 at the Committee of the Whole meeting.
The financing strategy developed by staff allows for the issuance of new debt and refinancing of existing debt in a manner which will eliminate an increase to the property tax levy. A planned use of surplus reserves and use of capitalized interest will allow the Village to maintain level debt service.
The Village takes pride in keeping this process open and transparent. In addition to the Open House on March 27, there will be several opportunities for the public to learn more about the project and provide feedback to staff and the Village Board.
Key Dates/Public Meetings
March 27 | 6 PM - Public Open House at 799 Biermann Court
April 3 | 7 PM - Village Board Meeting - Financing Plan presented for approval
April 10 | 7 PM - Committee of the Whole - Resident Feedback, RFP results discussion
April 17 | 7 PM- Second Reading of Financing plan
Information on a new police headquarters is available on the Village's website at www.mountprospect.org/PoliceHQ. This page will be updated regularly with the latest information.